Louis Emmanuel de Grandelumiere
Louis Emmanuel '''(8th January 1691 - 24th September 1743) was the Consort of Grandelumiere as the spouse of his first cousin, Empress Marie IV Sophie de Blois. He was the son of the late Prince de Conti. He was well known for his flamboyant lifestyle and for his patronage of the arts. While not as pious as his spouse, it is also known that he has an extremely strong faith and knows when to give it the priority. He has gained popularity lately amongst the common people for his charity and kind nature. Early Years '''Birth Louis Emmanuel was born at the Chateau de Chantilly on the 8th of January 1691 during the reign of Louis XIII. One of five children, he was the second son and third child of Louis Charles de Blois de Soissons and Jeanne Victoire de Blois de Penthievre to be born. The day of his birth was marked with a severe blizzard, thus few were able to travel to Chantilly and be present at the birth. His delivery was a long and painful one for his mother who would faint multiple times; the room being rather crowded even with the absence of many courtiers. After not less than eleven hours of hard labour, Louis Emmanuel would finally be born. Early Childhood Following his birth, he was placed into the care of a governess, the Baronne de la Besse, a sweet and caring woman who was in the middle of her forties. A close bond would form between himself and the governess whom he would look up to even for some time after leaving her care. This arose from his lack of familiarity with his parents. During most of his early childhood, Louis Emmanuel was greatly overlooked by his parents who favoured his older brother, Louis Francois, who was regarded as brilliant and handsome. Therefore, a rivalry would settle between the two boys, who would consider everything as a competition. Unfortunately, Louis Francois would die of tuberculosis when he was aged eight, leaving Louis Emmanuel as their only son at the time, much to the discontentment of his parents who would rarely speak to him after the death of his brother. After this, he would grow closer to his sister, Marie Angelique. It was noted by their governess that "The two of them made such an energetic pair, one could almost believe that when one lacks energy the other's presence fills them with more." However, to Louis Emmanuel's displeasure, Marie Angelique would be sent off to an abbey, two years later, to begin her education. Baptism On the day of his sixth birthday, Louis Emmanuel's baptism would take place in the Chapel of the Assumption of the Argenteuil Palace. The ceremony was carried out by the then Crown Cardinal, a close friend of his mother. The child would be christened Louis Emmanuel. Louis was chosen in order to honour the late Emperor Louis XIII whilst Emmanuel was chosen for both its meaning "God with us" and in honour of the Lord as according to the gospel of Matthew, Immanuel (romanised Emmanuel) refers to Jesus Christ himself. Education It is also at the age of six, as court etiquette requested, that he would have his breeching ceremony, shortly after his baptism. His parents would hire the Cardinal de Lucon as his tutor, an extremely strict man. He was taught in many subjects of the time including, inter alia, writing, reading, languages, mathematics, politics, history, geography, dance, musical composition and to play several instruments. His tutor would, however, focus on teaching him to play the viola de gamba when it came to musical teachings. He excelled in his studies and had a strong taste for Latin, history, politics and especially musical composition. The boy would also quickly become fluent in many foreign languages such as Latin, Italian and English. Adolescence Later Childhood With the death of their first son, it was eventually realised by Louis' parents that they would need to raise their son to the appropriate position required of their now eldest son. Though one could almost say his parents harboured resentment and blamed Louis in a manner for their son's death, their actions were typical of the nobility. Louis was not expected to inherit land after all and was only titled by courtesy, as his own parents were, and so, like many boys who were not set to inherit any land, they were raised to marry wealthy heiresses. However, the wealthy heiress his parents had in mind was little more than the young Empress. To influence any possible arrangement, Louis was to be brought up in a lavish lifestyle, furthered by his families wealthy background and standard. It was during this time he developed a close friendship with a similarly aged courtier, Jean-Jacques de Bazelaire, Seigneur de Lesseux. The two would accompany each other frequently. This was not too difficult as the Seigneur de Lesseux had been employed as a page in the company of the Penthievre family, which kept the two close. During these years, Louis would become increasingly the centre of attention in his circles, at this time only outmatched by those of courtly status. However, during this time, he was forced, reluctantly, to remove the Seigneur de Lesseux from his company, due to Louis' parents having him removed from the family employ. Engagement After his considerable education, his parents had begun to manoeuvre to display his availability on the marriage market, while the ministers and Regent organised an official marriage list for suitors to the Empress. The Regent was eager to keep both the wealth of their nation and power within their own family. As a result, members of the Penthievre and Conde families were considered favoured. This motive was further by the fact that other royal marriages had done little to prevent war in the past, furthering her own suspicion of their use. Louis Emmanuel was picked over other royal princes due to his prominent position within court life. With that being said, Louis' parents were quick to accept the proposal, and as court etiquette demanded, he was moved to the rooms of the Dauphin (at this time to rooms that would later become the Emperor's rooms were being used by the Regent). These would be where he would stay until the marriage. At this time, with no Dauphine, the rooms adjoining were granted to his parents. This, of course, furthered their own political position. Marriage Louis was married off to his cousin in a large ceremony held at Notre Dame de Paris. The ceremony was carried out by the Grand Almoner. It was a quite lavish one with crowds along the route to the Cathedral. His carriage followed the Empress' one which itself followed the Regents' own carriage. Louis Emmanuel was most pleased with the marriage having heard a lot of good comments about his cousin and being aware of her great beauty, although he was slightly concerned about whether they would get along or not as he did not know her opinion of him. For the occasion he had been dressed in an outfit somewhat similar to that of the Empress'; an ornate golden justacorps of silk and a cape of heavy ermine decorated in fleur-de-lis with heavy diamonds and pearl, embroidered with gold and silver. His culottes were also of golden colour and the golden buckles attached to the sides were in a fleur-de-lis shape and had been decorated with multiple sapphires. His shoes were white with red heels and golden buckles, also in a fleur-de-lis shape, had been attached to the top of both. Later Years Coronation A year following the marriage of the Empress, Marie IV was made Empress Regnant by her own right, the Regent stepping aside. With this, Louis was moved to the Consorts apartment, and the official crowning would begin. the coronation arrangements were made to be held at Notre Dame once more. The coronation outfit of Louis was prepared, a suit of pearl-white silk and intricate layers of countless ruffles which trimmed each cuff, this was all accompanied by an elaborate trunk-hose. Over his initial costume was a cloak of deep blue velvet with heavy ermine and gold thread used to weave fleurs-de-lis. His shoes were of the same pearl-white silk as his attire, it's platform was a loud blood-red damask. While the Empress would be attended by Her Surintendant de la Maison de l'Imperatrice, and several Dames d'Honneur, Louis was dressed in his ostentatious garments. He would travel in a dazzling gilt carriage, the Empress-Dowager riding behind in her own carriage. This long procession was followed by the Fils de Grandelumiere, Princes of the Blood, the Foreign Princes, then the High Nobility and the Lower Nobility. The ceremony itself was overseen by the Primate of Primates, Louis Nicolas de La Tour d'Auvergne, alongside the Crown Cardinal, Henri d'Albert de Luynes de Cardaillac, and the Court Almoner, Louis Constantin de Rochechouart de Mortemart, as well as several ranking Bishops. The coronation was widely attended and celebrated, bringing about a week's long list of events and balls hosted at Argenteuil. Private Life While a notedly charitable man, and never described by his contemporaries as cruel or unkind, he was not known for his warm relationship with his children. Unlike his wife, Marie IV, who would make time to spend with her children and in particular had a close relationship with her eldest, the Dauphin, and spending an hour with him each night with his governess, Louis did not find interest in such things. Though he wasn't entirely uninterested or uncaring for his children and did regularly inquire as to their well-being and health, wishing to ensure they were treated as well as they should be. No personal connection would ever be established with them nevertheless, publicly or otherwise. The majority of his time with spent with a small circle of friends which he trusted. This circle of friends was composed of the leading clique at court in his wife's time, the Dévots ''faction of court, which itself was a part of the ''Absolutistes faction, though one that did not believe in the supremacy of the State over the Church, and rather, wished to protect the rights of the Church. It was composed of himself, his wife, the Cardinal Mortemart and Madame (later Grande Madame). It was this circle that would have a stranglehold on court custom and politics. Beyond this circle, however, he was friendly with Monsieur, the Empress's brother, though himself not a member of the Dévots in the slightest. He would visit the Dauphine regularly and have tea with her in the rooms she occupied. He was also known for keeping himself composed in public, his emotions only really shown before his wife, and his confessor, and friend, Cardinal Mortemart, who he would confide in everything. Like his wife, Madame and Cardinal Mortemart, he would not indulge himself in affairs, and the four were known as entirely devout, widely regarded as the perfect courtiers, though not themselves without flaws. Death The 24th of September, 1743, started as regular, like all others. However, it would end far from normal. Following his daily visit from his physician, M. Benedict Victor Carufel, he was pronounced "fit and to the utmost, completely and utterly healthy." Henceforth, he went about his day. Nonetheless, following a visit to the Grand Salon with his household, he suddenly suffered a stroke. Being quickly brought to the Consort's chambers, M. Carufel was ushered in with an apothecary, who declared him to be dying. Surrounded by the initial courtiers who had seen his stroke, he was unable to speak his last words to them, being in a semi-unconscious state, as well as being paralyzed by the stroke. Because of the quickness of his stroke, word spread slowly. Therefore, before his last breath, he was surrounded only by the central Couer d'Honneur. This was composed of the Ministers of the Council, Officers of the Imperial Household, Monseigneur le Grand Dauphin, Monsieur, Madame, Duc d'Anjou, Duchesse d'Anjou, and a few others. This small group was ushered out by the Crown Cardinal, Louis-Jean Marie de Rohan, who awarded him his last rights. Shortly afterward, he died about two hours later. Marie IV was reportedly devastated by his death, along with Cardinal Mortemart and Madame, all part of his inner circle. The Imperial Court was plunged into mourning, from which it returned from shortly afterward his funeral. Appearance and Personality Appearance Louis was known as a remarkably handsome man for his time. Particularly as a young boy and later a young man, he was considered quite the catch for any potential bride, or those of a less feminine alignment. With bright blond hair, which he would enjoy showing when permitted, though powdered white while younger in front of the court, his skin was notedly unblemished and the whiteness was a matter of jealousy to many. Paired with his blond hair was a pair of deep blue eyes, which together made some compare him to the traditional view of angelic appearance. While not overly muscular, he was not lithe and kept himself healthy in his younger years, which was helped by his enjoyment of hunting, and stood at average height. He had a strong Roman nose, characteristic in his time of nobility and intelligence, and a dignified attitude about him. However, over time, his blond hair would fade to an increasingly brown shade as many do, and his healthy frame gradually became larger towards the end of his life, though never quite as large as some members of court, he was no longer as trim. Despite this, his skin would not change and was one of the aspects he kept well into his later years. Personality Privately, he was known as an approachable, kind man, and had a tendency to be quite open about his past and his experiences when speaking with those he trusted. Like many of those he was friendly with, he was a pious individual, mostly keeping his prayer in private and spent a good deal of time making prayer, a characteristic he shared with Madame. However, in public, he was one who enjoyed the art of gossiping, and from time to time enjoyed provoking courtiers for his own amusement. He was also known to enjoy purchasing excessively expensive items, be that rings, clothing, carriages, food or art. He was characterised as a man who was ambitious like his parents, generous to the poor of Paris and other major cities, but reserved and oftentimes distant. While he was trusting and respectful to those he trusted, he did not bestow trust easily and was often regarded as a rather stubborn man. Issue With his wife, they would produce five children; * Louis Raphael, Empereur Louis XIV ''(5th September 1708 - Present) * Charles Philippe, ''Monsieur, le Duc d'Anjou (8th December 1709 - Present) * Marie Louise, Princesse de Conde (10th November 1710 - 23rd June 1754) * Marie Victoire, Reine d'Espagne (17th February 1711 - 30th May 1749) * Louis Baptiste, Comte de Provence (24th May 1712 - 11th October 1756) Styles, Titles and Honours Styles and Titles * 8th January 1691 - 14th December 1707 His Serene Highness, Monsieur le Duc de Montmorency * 14th December 1707 - 24th September 1743 His Most Christian Majesty, the King-Emperor-Consort Honours * Grand Master of the Ordre de Saint-Benignus * Grand Master of the Ordre de Saint-Michel * Grand Master of the Ordre des Seraphs Category:Grandelumierian Consorts Category:17th Century Births Category:House Blois Category:Imperial Court Category:Grandelumierian Nobility Category:Births at Argenteuil Category:House Blois de Soissons Category:Grandelumierian Dukes